Alien Invasion in My Backyard

“You know those corny chapter books where kids solve mysteries? What if we did that?” Eleven-year-old Stuart Tennemeier’s brainstorm leads to the creation of the EMU Club (short for “Exploration-Mystery-Unbelievable”) in this offbeat series opener from Bolling, best known for his Tom the Dancing Bug comic. Structured as a top-secret report, with cartoons that look like taped-in photos and diagrams, the book follows the efforts of Stuart, his younger sister, and his best friend to locate a missing video-game controller—a seemingly innocuous mystery that may involve the fate of Earth itself. Filled with wild twists and funny dialogue, this suburban/intergalactic adventure bodes well for later installments. Ages 7–10. Agent: Jason Yarn, Paradigm. (Apr.)